Beneteau – First 36

Turning deep research into an enchanced sailing experience.

Client

Beneteau, France

Year(s)

2018-2020

An unconventional, holistic approach, combining in-depth research, co-creation and usability expertise, which proved instrumental in achieving the project goal.

Others about us:

Design research process proved essential in defining innovation opportunities when developing our sailing boats. It is exciting to hear that this process is now available in digital form.
Andraž Mihelin
CEO
,
Seascape
Excellent collaboration that provided employees with the opportunity to express their needs and expectations for the new space and professionally guided the process through which we aligned priorities.
Martina Knavs
Strategic Projects
,
Jožef Štefan Insitute
AMZS has a rich tradition yet faces mobility challenges. Flexibility, agility, and innovation drive our mission. We grow as individuals and teams. To communicate our mission, we partnered with Sito, enabling us to overcome challenges and co-create efficient paths for new offers and upgrades.
Lucija Sajevec
CEO
,
AMZS
Sustainability is a core value at Intra Lighting, but often takes a back seat to quality, modularity, and culture, relying on individual employees. Efforts lacked consistent management and communication. Our collaboration sought to create a comprehensive sustainability strategy, with workshops producing valuable content for future solutions.
Nika Furlan
Head of Marketing
,
Intra Lighting
Over the duration of the project, our company has grown from 4 to 14 employees and has entered the US and Australian markets. Thanks to KCDM, we started using service design and began systematically managing our design processes.
Andraž Mihelin
CEO
,
Seascape
Throughout the entire process, we have learned from Sito that we cannot address and resolve different needs and requirements using the methods we have known and been accustomed to until now. This is a significant gain that will help us in the development of our entire business, not just in space planning.
Marin Medak
Founder
,
Della Spina
Using Intuido, we were able to collect more than 300 insights in just 2 weeks, providing us with a better understanding of our users, their experiences and needs. The tool also enabled us to create organised and well-structured innovation guidelines that will help shape the development of our products and services in the future.
Matija Torlak
Product Director
,
Plastika Skaza

Others about us:

Over the duration of the project, our company has grown from 4 to 14 employees and has entered the US and Australian markets. Thanks to KCDM, we started using service design and began systematically managing our design processes.
Andraž Mihelin
CEO
,
Seascape
Sustainability is a core value at Intra Lighting, but often takes a back seat to quality, modularity, and culture, relying on individual employees. Efforts lacked consistent management and communication. Our collaboration sought to create a comprehensive sustainability strategy, with workshops producing valuable content for future solutions.
Nika Furlan
Head of Marketing
,
Intra Lighting
AMZS has a rich tradition yet faces mobility challenges. Flexibility, agility, and innovation drive our mission. We grow as individuals and teams. To communicate our mission, we partnered with Sito, enabling us to overcome challenges and co-create efficient paths for new offers and upgrades.
Lucija Sajevec
CEO
,
AMZS
Using Intuido, we were able to collect more than 300 insights in just 2 weeks, providing us with a better understanding of our users, their experiences and needs. The tool also enabled us to create organised and well-structured innovation guidelines that will help shape the development of our products and services in the future.
Matija Torlak
Product Director
,
Plastika Skaza
Excellent collaboration that provided employees with the opportunity to express their needs and expectations for the new space and professionally guided the process through which we aligned priorities.
Martina Knavs
Strategic Projects
,
Jožef Štefan Insitute
Design research process proved essential in defining innovation opportunities when developing our sailing boats. It is exciting to hear that this process is now available in digital form.
Andraž Mihelin
CEO
,
Seascape
Throughout the entire process, we have learned from Sito that we cannot address and resolve different needs and requirements using the methods we have known and been accustomed to until now. This is a significant gain that will help us in the development of our entire business, not just in space planning.
Marin Medak
Founder
,
Della Spina

Others about us:

Design research process proved essential in defining innovation opportunities when developing our sailing boats. It is exciting to hear that this process is now available in digital form.
Andraž Mihelin
CEO
,
Seascape
AMZS has a rich tradition yet faces mobility challenges. Flexibility, agility, and innovation drive our mission. We grow as individuals and teams. To communicate our mission, we partnered with Sito, enabling us to overcome challenges and co-create efficient paths for new offers and upgrades.
Lucija Sajevec
CEO
,
AMZS
Using Intuido, we were able to collect more than 300 insights in just 2 weeks, providing us with a better understanding of our users, their experiences and needs. The tool also enabled us to create organised and well-structured innovation guidelines that will help shape the development of our products and services in the future.
Matija Torlak
Product Director
,
Plastika Skaza
Excellent collaboration that provided employees with the opportunity to express their needs and expectations for the new space and professionally guided the process through which we aligned priorities.
Martina Knavs
Strategic Projects
,
Jožef Štefan Insitute
Throughout the entire process, we have learned from Sito that we cannot address and resolve different needs and requirements using the methods we have known and been accustomed to until now. This is a significant gain that will help us in the development of our entire business, not just in space planning.
Marin Medak
Founder
,
Della Spina
Over the duration of the project, our company has grown from 4 to 14 employees and has entered the US and Australian markets. Thanks to KCDM, we started using service design and began systematically managing our design processes.
Andraž Mihelin
CEO
,
Seascape
Sustainability is a core value at Intra Lighting, but often takes a back seat to quality, modularity, and culture, relying on individual employees. Efforts lacked consistent management and communication. Our collaboration sought to create a comprehensive sustainability strategy, with workshops producing valuable content for future solutions.
Nika Furlan
Head of Marketing
,
Intra Lighting

Others about us:

Using Intuido, we were able to collect more than 300 insights in just 2 weeks, providing us with a better understanding of our users, their experiences and needs. The tool also enabled us to create organised and well-structured innovation guidelines that will help shape the development of our products and services in the future.
Matija Torlak
Product Director
,
Plastika Skaza
AMZS has a rich tradition yet faces mobility challenges. Flexibility, agility, and innovation drive our mission. We grow as individuals and teams. To communicate our mission, we partnered with Sito, enabling us to overcome challenges and co-create efficient paths for new offers and upgrades.
Lucija Sajevec
CEO
,
AMZS
Excellent collaboration that provided employees with the opportunity to express their needs and expectations for the new space and professionally guided the process through which we aligned priorities.
Martina Knavs
Strategic Projects
,
Jožef Štefan Insitute
Design research process proved essential in defining innovation opportunities when developing our sailing boats. It is exciting to hear that this process is now available in digital form.
Andraž Mihelin
CEO
,
Seascape
Sustainability is a core value at Intra Lighting, but often takes a back seat to quality, modularity, and culture, relying on individual employees. Efforts lacked consistent management and communication. Our collaboration sought to create a comprehensive sustainability strategy, with workshops producing valuable content for future solutions.
Nika Furlan
Head of Marketing
,
Intra Lighting
Over the duration of the project, our company has grown from 4 to 14 employees and has entered the US and Australian markets. Thanks to KCDM, we started using service design and began systematically managing our design processes.
Andraž Mihelin
CEO
,
Seascape
Throughout the entire process, we have learned from Sito that we cannot address and resolve different needs and requirements using the methods we have known and been accustomed to until now. This is a significant gain that will help us in the development of our entire business, not just in space planning.
Marin Medak
Founder
,
Della Spina

New boat interior language

In 2018, worldwide leading boat manufacturer Beneteau with over 120 years of experience building sailing yachts and motorboats, acquired our long-term client, the Slovenian sports sailboats manufacturer Seascape. Beneteau then abandoned the existing First program for Seascape/First 14, 24 and 27 sailboats known for their speed, agility, pleasure, and ease of use.

Our main target was to design a boat interior that would not only provide ergonomic and comfortable space but also enable and enhance the sailing experience. Our core challenge was combining Beneteau’s design language with innovative solutions based on thorough and creative design research.

Taking unconventional approaches

The process was initiated with in-depth design research of different user types, from families, and sports sailors, to boat dealers and racers. Two accompanying multi-disciplinary design sprints merged knowledge from active sailing, caravanning and general interiors. Crucially, we built a life-size cardboard mock-up in the early stages of the design process to put new insights and ideas into context, particularly those related to spatial ergonomics. This allowed us to test solutions early, uncover valuable new insights and integrate them directly into the evolving design.

Innovation directions from the research led to further creative project development. In the second stage, Beneteau was presented with our three concept opportunities for the galley, diner, and double berth, all of which proposed different possibilities with particular emphasis on modularity and space perception. Overlapping interior functionalities, like the salon with the galley, allows the interior to appear more prominent.

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We suggested a modular layout that can be adapted to various configurations while minimising weight. With the bar area linking the galley to the salon, the perception of space is bigger, transforming the salon into a proper lounge area. Other innovation features include repositionable pouffe stools, a storage cabinet, a folding sink block in the bathroom and bunks in aft cabins.

A highly co-creative process

The desired effect of combining the comfort of cruising with sportive sailing on the Beneteau First 36 would not have been possible without the close collaboration of many experts involved in the whole design process. Nautical designer Lorenzo Argento oversaw the whole Beneteau exterior design language. Material and technological development was developed by Giovanni Belgrano of Pure Design & Engineering. The boat’s nautical performance was overseen by naval architect Sam Manuard. Sito contributed to the development of various First 36 features by providing front-end innovation, full-scale mock-ups and overall interior design of this exciting boat.